Monday, 3 June 2013

A Saucy Stitch is Born

A Saucy Stitch is Born

So,
here I am in the glorious blogosphere, launching my first blog, hurrah! I have been working up to starting this blog
for the last few months and after a great deal of procrastination and general
dithering, I figured that I had better just get on with it. Self-doubt
has threatened to bully me into silence, but I have stuffed its mouth full of
cake and shut it in the attic with David and Kylie (more on this at a later
date). Let's have a look at what this blog is all about....

Baking

Over
the past few years I have accumulated lots of cookery books; some are dear
old friends, their pages stuck together with butter and sugar
or smeared with chocolate; others have been taken to bed to
ogle at their pretty pictures but I have failed to pop their cherry and try the recipes. In this blog, I want to abandon myself to the joy
of baking and share with you the new recipes that I woo and schmooze until
they result in something fabulous and life enhancing (oh yes, cake is
most definitely life enhancing). Cake seems to have almost
mythical powers to make people happy; so let's put our fingers in the
metaphorical cake batter of life and enjoy the simple pleasure of licking the
bowl clean.

Stitching

Two
years ago I secretly bought a sewing machine. I covered it with a cloth
and hid it in the cupboard under the stairs for a month, until I
plucked up the courage to take bring it out and remove it from its box.
I had never used a sewing machine before and it felt as if I had taken
in an exotic animal that might bite me if I didn't handle it properly.
After a couple of workshops, I gained a little confidence and I have
sewn a few things, but my sewing has been sporadic and guilt laden.
I always feel as if I should be doing something more important, like
hoovering or cleaning the toilet. I have squirreled away
fabric and purchased patterns and books, but still timidly tip-toe around the
edge of getting serious about my sewing. In this blog, I resolve to
shake off that guilt, and take the pledge to sew on a regular basis. I
will share my progress with you, be it good, bad or indifferent, reviewing
patterns and books and tutorials along the way. Who knows, I may even
start wearing my 'me-made' items of clothing out in public!

Charity Shops

I have
a penchant for vintage china, sewing boxes, glassware, fabric and anything
old and interesting. When I say vintage, I mean the sort of things your
granny might very well own. Generally charity shops get this kind of
thing from house clearances or donations, often after someone has died or
moved into a nursing home. Although this might seem sad, I get a real
kick out of providing a new home for these well-loved items; I imagine who
the previous owner was and what kind of life she lived. In this blog I
am going to share with you my charity shops finds, and give you some top tips
for what to look for and what to do with it once you have it.

The Incidental War on Sh'mummery

I am
'blessed' with five children and one day, a few years ago, my middle child
charmingly coined the phrase 'sh'mum' to express his dissatisfaction with my
performance as a mother. It's an abbreviation of 'shit mum' and as a
family, we have cheerfully embraced the phrase and liberally apply a 'sh' in
front of anything, as we see fit. For example, when my sister forgets
one of her nieces' or nephews' birthdays, she refers to herself as a
Sh'auntie. This is all done in good humour and without a hint of
reproach or malice, should you be getting upset at this point; we are a family
who know how to laugh at each other and more importantly, ourselves.
However, I am constantly irked by the lack of organisation in my day to
day life, and it's time to get my arse in gear and attempt to make the
most out of every day, without beating myself up too much when I get it
wrong.

The Sauce

Oh yes,
I love a bit of 'Carry On' humour. Ladies and gentlemen, titter ye not,
for we shall not be taking ourselves too seriously in this here blog.
I am afraid that I can't help myself when it comes to double entendres,
and they may just slip out, ooh, err, missus. But, joking aside, what I
mean by 'sauce' are the things in life that make me feel good about who I am,
and add depth and joy to the everyday mundane things that we all have to do.
If variety is the spice of life, then creativity is the sauce on
the Knickerbocker Glory that is my life.

So there you have it. A lifestyle blog that focuses on baking, sewing
and some charity shop 'granny chic'. What's not to love about that?
I am going to share lots of great links and blogs that inspire me to be
creative, and I hope that will also inspire you to be creative and enjoy the
simple things in life. The aim is for around three blog posts a week
and I hope you will bear with me as I grapple with getting to grips with the
mechanics of how the blog looks.

And finally, I want to hear from you. Yes, really I do. What I
love about the blogging community is the way that it brings like-minded
people together to encourage one another and share their own experiences.

Hurrah! First blog post done, and now we can get on with the fun stuff
and eat some cake.

Hi GAL. Love the blog. Very life-affirming. Are you really aiming to blog 3 times a week? Hats off to you if you manage that. I had aspirations to be cake-baking-clothes-making Mum of the Year when I started having children, but then life got in the way. These days my experiences are more in the realm of ferrying Rosie to and from the sewing shop in T Wells to buy 'stuff' for her textiles AS, and cleaning up in the kitchen after Lydia has had one of her frantic baking episodes and left a fine dusting of icing sugar and splatters of cake batter and butter icing all over the kitchen. We had a bit of an 'episode' with Oreo cup cakes this week. Maybe I'll tell you about it next time ...

Dear Giddy - I love the fact that everyone calls you different thingsI too was a Blog virgin and as a result this post may actually reach you twice (or not at all but good luck reading it then).Good for you, I very much look forward to hearing what you have made and what Giddy Uncle thinks of them - does Giddy Uncle have a blog name yet ?Happy Blogging

You left a charming comment at The Blog Guidebook and I had to check out your newly birthed blog! I love it so far! Have read every post...I lived in England when I was a child...I love charity shops, carboot sales, jumble sales, swap shops, you name it! Plus, I adore cake. Sadly, here in g'awful USA, the cake doesn't appeal to me and the flour is GMO...so, I'm not eating cake. I had a lovely coffee walnut cake last time I was in Harpenden (Herts), and I can't get it off my mind! I will be following you! Good luck with the new endeavor and let me know if you need any bloggy assistance!Hugs!Sarah

Thank you so much for your lovely comment; great to hear from you. It is a scandal that you can't get good cake in the USA. I shall write to President Obama about this immediately (insert a cheeky wink). GAL x